Marionette
by LEva114
Summary: "She was darling - he was almost sad to send her to her no doubt painful end. Almost." Modern AU, rated T for blood, violence, disturbing content, mild language, and a sparkly clown. TRAGIC ZELINK.


**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters used in this story, only the idea.**

**Author's Note: Wanted to write something supernaturally horrifying and twisted, and this was born. I rated this T, since I think there isn't anything too gory in this, but you might say otherwise. Read at your own risk - you might find the following oneshot creepy/weird/bloody/weird again.**

* * *

Zelda skipped ahead of Link, grinning ear to ear. Her blonde hair was starting to come out of the braids it was woven into, and her makeup was slightly smeared with sweat.

"I love the carnival! Link, aren't you having fun?" she shouted behind her, falling back and rejoining her boyfriend. Link looked up when she grabbed his hand, and he smiled and nodded brightly. The carnival may have been dingy and overpriced, but Zelda was a riot to watch running around it. She got excited over every last thing, nostalgia glossing over the seediness and trash that were rampant. She was like a little kid. Link had never seen her this upbeat and for lack of a better word, hyperactive. Her grin was completely genuine, and her enthusiasm was rather infectious as she pointed at a figurine in front of a house of mirrors. The sign above it proudly stated its function, and Zelda squealed with glee.

"Oh my gosh, Link! Let's go in here! I want to find that one mirror that makes you look fat!" She rushed towards the curtains that marked the entrance, her journey quickly cut short by a cane that whipped out to block the door. Zelda gasped and skittered back, her eyes wide with surprise. Link almost burst out laughing at the look on her face, but it quickly ceased when what they thought was a mannequin moved. The man wore a spotless white and yellow suit, covered in diamonds and mirrors and sequins. He positively shone comparison to the otherwise dirty front of the attraction. The gloved hands pulled the cane back in, and he balanced himself on it before looking up at them under the ornate top hat perched on his head.

He had to be a clown. That was the only explanation for the amount of makeup caked on his face. It seemed to be predominantly purple and white, with a black diamond painted meticulously under one eye. His face tightened into a wide, friendly smile when he saw the two shocked teenagers. He bobbed his head in greeting, the one particularly faceted blue diamond dangling from his ear sparkling and shining, reflecting all the colored lights from the Ferris wheel next to the house of mirrors.

"Hello, dear lady and honorable gentleman. Welcome to my humble establishment. Tickets are now on sale for the low, low price of only five rupees per person." His voice was sincere in its ridiculousness, a booming baritone that seemed impossible judging from his slim build. The clown swept into a deep bow. Zelda giggled, her grip on the stuffed Remlit Link had won for her relaxing slightly, but Link tensed up even more. There was something deeply unsettling about the man under all his makeup and bravado. His eyes were piercing, such a dark brown they were nearly black, and they were cold and emotionless behind his wide, even smile. His attention shifted from the more receptive Zelda to Link, and he shivered as their two gazes met.

"Would the gentleman wish to buy tickets?" His voice was now whisper thin, dangerous even. Zelda didn't seem to notice, but Link was all too aware of the barely concealed malice. He reached for Zelda's hand, grabbing it tightly to try and pull her back.

"Nah, we were just going," Link managed to choke out, trying to sound casual. Zelda pouted, the stuffed Remlit heaving a sigh with her.

"Please Link! I used to go to one of these all the time when I was little!" Link still remained unconvinced, his stare competing with the clown's for most intimidating.

"Zel, I just don't have a good feeling about this guy," he murmured out of the corner of his mouth. She frowned.

"Nothing's going to happen. And he's a clown, he's supposed to be weird. You're being silly, Link." She swatted his shoulder playfully with the stuffed toy, a smile blooming on her face. Link's lip curled in consideration as he looked back at the clown. A triumphant smile was pasted on his whitened face.

"I'll buy the tickets," Zelda offered when he didn't answer, her eyebrows rising. He shook his head quickly.

"Nah, I've got it." He pulled out a yellow rupee and tossed it to the clown. A gloved hand snapped out with a speed that seemed impossible and snagged it, and the look on the man's face for some reason made Link's stomach sink in defeat. He reached out for Zelda's hand, and she quickly grabbed it, giving him a reassuring smile before pulling him inside, jabbering excitedly. When they passed the clown, Link thought he noticed a coldness emanating from the figure, even thought he saw Zelda shiver in her tank top and shorts, but then they were past the curtain and the clown was gone.

* * *

The clown bit into the rupee as soon as the two had disappeared. Satisfied, he slipped it into an unseen pocket.

His first customers in weeks. He was going to enjoy this.

His heels clicked sharply on the cracked pavement as he walked around, bolting the emergency exit shut.

"Can't have them using that, can we?" he murmured to himself. He practically danced to the entrance and poked his head inside. The boy and the girl had disappeared, and he could hear faint, high pitched giggling, no doubt from the girl. She was darling - he was almost sad to send her to her no doubt painful end.

Almost.

He pulled down the purple curtain, folding it up in his hands and shutting the hidden door as quietly as he could. He locked it, the bolt slamming into the notch with an air of finality. He laughed a little.

"Closing for the night, Ghira?" He jumped slightly, then composed himself as he turned around. His boss and the owner of the carnival, Fi, was standing in front of the house of mirrors, her pointed chin jutting out at him while she regarded him with steel grey eyes. Her face was neutral under the little makeup she wore.

"As a matter of fact, yes. Business has been slow lately." He sighed dramatically. Her face twisted.

"That's strange. I could have sworn I saw two teenagers walk this way." She crossed her arms, the sheer sleeves of her top fluttering. "You losing your touch? Couldn't get them to stop?" There was a slight teasing tone in her pleasant voice, but Ghirahim still scowled.

"You wish." Fi smiled dimly at the venom in his tone, somewhat used to it, then drifted off, her arms held out beside her as she tried to keep her balance in teetering heels. Ghirahim let out the breath he had been holding, then finished folding the curtain and departed from the fair, planning to come back early in the morning to clean up the mess.

* * *

Zelda wandered ahead of Link, her eyes scanning over the trick mirrors. She finally stopped in front of one, clapping her hands together.

"Found it!" she crowed, smiling at the bloated and distorted image of herself. Link came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her shoulders, kissing her on the cheek.

"It doesn't do you justice." She smirked, reaching up and grabbing his hands where they laced together, quickly untangling his fingers and replacing them with her own as she twirled out of his embrace. They continued to walk through the empty house of mirrors, the only sound being the tapping of their footsteps on the sticky floor. Zelda finally went silent, the hair on the back of her neck standing up as they passed through a hallway covered with shattered bits of glass and mirror. She only saw her reflection as a collection of flickers and flashes of blonde hair, blue eyes, and pink shirt.

"This is kind of creepy," she muttered, squeezing Link's fingers and the stuffed toy she still stubbornly carried tightly.

"I think we're almost done. Here, this is probably the last room." The couple walked staunchly through the open archway into a room shaped like a pentagon. Each wall and the ceiling were covered in a flat, flawless mirror, each one reflecting the image of the ones across it so the image of the two blondes stretched on forever. Zelda searched for a door, her flip flops sticking to the black floor as she took a step forward hesitantly.

"I guess we have to go all the way back," Links aid apologetically. "It's strange, it almost feels like there should be something in this room." Zelda nodded absently, now looking up at the ceiling. Strangely, there weren't any lights in the room, yet it was still bright, almost blindingly so.

"Zelda." The blankness in Link's tone scared her out of her daze, and her head snapped down to look at him. He was standing in front of a mirror, the archway now gone and completely identical to the rest of the room. Her breath caught in her throat.

"Where's the door?" Link shrugged.

"I turned around and it was gone." His voice was still blank and stiff, each word sounding like it was an effort to be pushed out of his mouth. Zelda walked up next to him and placed her hand against the mirror. It was solid, cold and smooth and unflinchingly real. A shudder ran down her spine, and the stuffed Remlit fell to the floor, forgotten as she began to paw frantically at the mirror.

"Hello!" she called out. "HELLO?" Her voice just bounced around the room, echoing uselessly before falling silent. She stepped back to join Link, who was now staring dumbly at the mirror that blocked their escape.

"I don't understand… This doesn't make sense." She turned around, trying to find another possible exit, and she screamed, her hand clapping over her mouth.

A tall, faceless figure was standing behind her in the mirror, looming ominously without moving. The cloth covering its features was the color of dust, the fabric billowing and fluttering out as it breathed. Zelda's heart nearly stopped, the room going dead silent as more of the strange figures materialized in the mirrors, two to each. They shifted restlessly to make room for their companions, their long bodies betraying nothing of their race or gender, just that they were tall and had a head and shoulders. Link stepped closer to her, swallowing nervously.

"What… What the hell is going on?" he squeaked out. Zelda shook her head.

"Is this part of the ride?" They both went completely still as the figures, ten in all, seemed to swell upwards, their limbs detaching from their seamless bodies, revealing rotted, too long fingers that spread and reached for the two teenagers. Twenty hands pressed against the mirrors, seeming to be able to go no further. The click of their exposed bones was horribly loud in the silence of the room, and the rattling sound of their breathing sent shivers down the two's spines. Zelda skittered away from the wall where two pairs of hands reached for her hungrily, the terror she was feeling shoving its way on her face even though she tried to push it down. Link joined her in the center of the room, and she dragged him to the ground where she huddled and sat, shivering as the temperature dropped quickly. Soon their breath was billowing out in clouds of mist, and they hugged each other, Zelda shivering frantically. They were both trying to look in every direction at once, a feat both helped and complicated by the mirrored surfaces the figures resided in. They began to beat on the glass, wailing as if they were in pain, their cries for blood occasionally interrupted by wracking coughs that shook their thin frames so hard it looked like they would fall to pieces. Zelda shrieked along with them, burying her head in Link's shoulder as she squeezed him tighter.

"What do we do!" she cried, her fingers digging desperately into Link's shoulders. His blue eyes looked for a solution, then it came in the form of the bulge in his pocket. He pulled out his phone, looking at it sadly for a moment, then he threw it as hard as he could at the mirror he was facing. The creatures didn't stop their tirade or even so much as flinch as the phone wheeled through the air and collided with the mirror with a loud crack. It fell to the ground with a smack, the screen shattered in a cobweb just like the mirror it had hit. The shards of glass fell to the ground, tinkling slightly as the two watched expectantly, holding their breath as a final piece fell to the ground, shattering into a thousand pieces that spread across the painted floor.

And that's when all hell broke loose.

The dusty figures rushed to the puncture wound in the mirror, crowding and stumbling through the ragged hole with an almost lively gait and then vanishing as they stepped inside the room. They were still visible in the mirrors, their cloaks rippling outwards as they rushed towards the two, link in particular, but to the naked eye they were transparent, the only thing betraying their presence a ripple in the air like a mirage. Zelda screamed and scrabbled backward as she saw the grey ghosts rush at her out of the corner of her eye. Her head snapped back, a freezing cold gale blowing into the tiny room that forced the two apart. Her skull slammed into the mirror, fracturing it where her head smashed into the wall. She slumped forward, her consciousness ebbing and then returning with frightening clarity as something landed on her head and her lap with a wet, cold thump.

Her head turned to the mirror and she screamed when she saw two ghoulish rats sitting on her, their tiny sharp teeth bared at her as they hissed, the soft sound barely distinguishable from the wails that now echoed ceaselessly throughout the room. Huge sores covered them, blood and another indescribable fluid trickling from the ghastly blisters. She swore she could feel it run down her forehead as it did so in the mirror, and she screamed, trying to fling them off her but encountering only air. They were only half real, their nails scratching and drawing blood from the tiny cuts they inflicted on her face and scalp. Zelda stood up and stomped around, still shrieking in disgust and fear, going into a frantic dance as she tried to throw off the ghostly rats. The tiny claws gouged new cuts in her scalp, ripping out some of her hair as they hit the floor with a squeak. They twisted and grew back into the towering dusty figures, but they waited, pulling back with sounds like sighs as they huddled against the wall, casting the blonde furtive glances as she sobbed into her hands. Zelda looked for Link, screaming when she saw him pinned up against the wall, his feet kicking out hysterically as he was raised up against the mirror. His eyes squeezed shut, his breath coming out in hushed gasps as he scrabbled at the invisible fingers around his neck. Zelda was frozen to the spot, helpless to watch in the mirror as another one of the dusty figures rose up and caressed his face, drawing a bony finger over his eyes to close them and smothering his mouth with a rotted hand. With this done, a third one rose up in front of him, its arms pulling up to his neck and shielding him from view.

Zelda turned away, covering her face and crying as a wet thunk rang out in the small room. The dusty figures pulled away, their robes brushing along the ground with a raspy sound, and Link's body fell to the floor with an empty thud, his neck slit open and his blue eyes wheeling and unseeing. It wasn't deep enough to be immediately fatal, but he still bled, blood pooling on the floor around him. His hand reached out for her, flopping on the ground and clawing at the painted floor, but Zelda bawled and backpedaled, blood dripping into her eyes from the jagged cuts on her scalp as she pressed herself up against the mirror opposite from the creatures.

One of them leaned down, a gurgle coming from its throat like a chuckle, and picked Link up by his upper arms. Blood soaked his shirt front and splattered on his face. One of them swept in front of him, opening his mouth and leaning in for a sick imitation of a kiss. He started jerking around like a puppet on invisible strings, his arms straightening and clenching uselessly as his legs kicked out. Zelda watched in horror as his spasms ceased and they placed him lightly on his feet, clearing a path to the trembling girl. He swayed unsteadily as if he had been drinking, his eyes closed and the shallow slit in his throat wide open.

"_Kill."_ With that one hissed word, spoken by all ten of the figures at the same time, his eyes snapped open, the blue they once were lost to a wash of red that matched the blood dribbling down his throat.

…

"_Kill."_

(the girl)

(SHE'S OURS ALL OURS)

(so are you)

(boy)

NO I'M NOT.

…

Suddenly, Link shook his head, clutching his temples. His eyes reverted back to blue, and he squeezed them shut as he shook his head frantically, bowing so his torso was perpendicular to the floor.

"No, I'm not!" he shrieked, his voice grating on Zelda's eardrums. It was raspy and rough, breathy and shrill.

…

(YES YOU ARE)

(dothedeed)

**(give up the ghost)**

(SO MUCH LIGHT)

(SOMUCH**BLOOD**)

(feed)

_(feed us)_

(WE HUNGER)

_(we thirst)_

(child)

I'M NOT A CHILD

"_Stop it! Just make it _STOP!_"_

…

He fell to his knees, his screams blending with Zelda's as she buried her head in her hands and sobbed.

"Stop it! Just make it _STOP!_" she howled, frantically trying to make herself heard over the wind that had begun to scream its way into the room again.

…

(DEATH)

(death will make it _stop_)

(make it _end_)

(you heard her)

**(HEAR THE GIRL)**

(she wants it to end)

(fulfill her wish)

**(KILLKILLKILL)**

(WE WANT)

_(we need)_

(fulfill _US,_ child)

_**I WON'T I WON'T I WON'T.**_

…

"I WON'T!" Link screeched, his hands clawing and pulling at his hair, his eyes, his ears, occasionally drawing blood as he dragged his nails over his cheeks. He had slumped all the way to the ground, and he was now lying on his side, seizing and shuddering and screaming as the voices wailed inside his head. Zelda had stopped a couple seconds ago, and now pushed herself into a corner. Without warning, cold hands shoved her towards the convulsing body on the ground, and she collapsed, her head falling forward with a shout as she slammed against the floor and lost consciousness, mere feet away from Link.

…

(SHE'S _RIGHT_ THERE)

(soclose)

(feed)

_(fulfill)_

(PLEASE)

**(YOU'DBEDOINGUSASERVICE)**

(we WANT)

(who are _you_ to deny _us_)

...

"I will risk everything… Everything to deny you!" he gasped out, pulling his hand away from Zelda with apparent effort and clutching it with his other one, tucking it against his chest as he shivered involuntarily.

…

**(fool)**

(FOOLISHBOY)

(why do you fight us _so_)

(WE WANT)

(fulfill)

(need your light)

_**(please)**_

(DO IT)

(DOIT)

**(DO IT NOW)**

(boy)

(do it)

_**(do it)**_

…

Link threw his head back and screamed, his eyes bugging out of his head as his back arched almost to the breaking point. The dust figures surrounded him, crouching and placing their hands on him. He could feel their weight, the coldness of their fingers and the exposed bones on his skin, but he couldn't see them, even as they cut him all over and breathed over the lacerations, mist expelling from their mouths and turning his swollen skin grey. Their desires, their hurts, their wants, and their need for blood crowded out Link's mind, smothered the only part that hadn't lost its way-

…

(ours)

**(DO IT)**

_(NOW)_

…

The figures drew back as he stopped shuddering, watching expectantly as he pushed himself up and crawled over to Zelda's prone form. His hands occasionally faltered, sending him crashing to the floor, but they didn't move to help him, only saw the bloody trail behind him continue to mark his slow progress. Zelda's eyes were beginning to open, flickering from awareness to unconsciousness at a dizzying rate. She grunted as she was roughly shoved onto her back, then a dead weight was placed on her stomach. She barely had time to inhale for the last time before slick hands wrapped around her throat and started to squeeze. Zelda's eyes flew open all the way, and she started to sputter and choke, clawing at the very real hands around her neck.

"Stop…" she spat out desperately, her blue eyes wide as her face turned red. Her hands flew up and scrabbled against Link's face-

Nails digging into the slice on his throat-

_(NO NO NO PLEASE-)_

Thumbs pressing into her trachea mercilessly-

Hips bucking and thrashing-

Tears trailing down two faces-

Red eyes flickering blue-

(I'm so sorry-)

_(NO PLEASE-)_

(I don't want-)

_(I DON'T WANT TO DIE)_

A frantic squeaking-

Death rattling as it drew closer-

(OURS)

**(always ours)**

Blonde hair stained red-

Hands falling limply to the floor-

Fingers still outstretched-

Leaving-

Departing-

(No!)

(I didn't want-)

(I didn't want her to die.)

(Why'd you make me?)

(ZELDA!)

...

His hands stayed tightly clamped around her neck long after she had stopped struggling. Link was forced to freeze in place, shuddering with tamped down sobs as Zelda's blue eyes stared accusingly at him even in death.

…

(good job)

_**(BOY)**_

(we knew you could)

(light-)

**(harvested-)**

(always-)

_(faith-)_

…

Link began to shut down mentally, the hissing and whispering voices being drowned out by a persistent whining in his ears. When they released him, he collapsed on top of Zelda, partly from blood loss and partly because he had lost the will to move. He weakly rolled off her, feeling the breath of the ten figures on his skin as he closed his eyes and covered his face with blood-spattered hands.

They descended.

They feasted.

And they relished every second of his dying screams.

* * *

The sun hadn't even risen when Ghirahim walked back into the chamber of mirrors, breathing in the smell of blood. He surveyed the room with satisfaction, quickly finding his tribute in the center of the room but ignoring it for the time being. He noted the shattered mirrors and the pools of darkness on the floor and sighed at the thought of the clean up. At the least the spirits hadn't left any bodies or bones behind, which would have been disastrous. One time they had left a Twili girl only half devoured in the middle of the room.

That was not a fun day – he still had stains on some of his clothes to prove it.

Promising himself that he would go back and get the mop in a second, Ghirahim walked calmly up to whatever the spirits had left him. He palmed the boy's and girl's wallets, slipping them easily in his pocket before poking a bloody, ragged flip flop with his foot, a look of disgust on his face. He kicked it to the side, shaking his head.

Ghirahim finally turned to the last item the figures had left behind after their gorge, the large stuffed Remlit that the girl had been carrying when she walked inside. The white fur was soaked in blood, green glass eyes staring up at him dolefully with a sickeningly cute, mismatched smile stitched underneath. His powdered face curled in amusement, and he picked it up by its half of a tail, the other half having been ripped off. He then walked out of the room, giggling slightly to himself as the stuffed toy swung from his gloved hands.

Today was going to be a _great_ day.

* * *

**The writing style used at the moments where Link kills Zelda and is fighting with the figures (I never really decided what they were, really. Poes? Demons? Idk.) was inspired by Chaos Walking, an awesome book series. I've always loved that writing style. Idk again. This one shot just has me going "WTF?" at myself.**

**If you enjoyed, review or favorite or whatever.**


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